The well-known longtime Queenstown couple — parents of Maru, Jesse and Emma, and grandparents to eight — this year spent 159 nights at Christchurch’s Ranui House, as Jane first underwent a gruelling stem cell transplant at Christchurch Hospital and subsequent treatment for primary myelofibrosis.
The transplant was the only potential cure for the rare and progressive bone marrow disorder, which Jane was first diagnosed with in 2011.
She says it’s known as the "watch and wait disease", and by mid-last year, the wait was "pretty much over, for me".
"My outlook was looking fairly short at that point."
While the couple had spoken at length about stem cell treatment, they’d failed to find a match for Jane in the worldwide database of donors.
So, both Maru, 41, and Jesse, 38, put their hands up to help.
They were both matches.
Steve describes that as "staggering".
Jane: "It was quite remarkable.
"Maru was in Christchurch, so it just stood to reason that was the most sensible one to go for."
Prior to the transplant, on January 12, Jane underwent "total chemo and eradication", and then spent four weeks in Christchurch Hospital subjected to a blur of tests, radiation and more chemotherapy, which was "really tough".
"I was completely zonked — I couldn’t even walk 30 metres, let alone eat."
Steve, meanwhile, was able to stay at the nearby Ranui House, for free, ensuring he could be by his wife’s side in a matter of minutes.
"I don’t think I could have done this without him," she says, "it’s been so important for me to have him on this journey."
After being given the all-clear to leave the ward in February, Jane, too, moved in to Ranui House, where she remained for five months while undergoing further treatment.
Steve notes she couldn’t get out of a chair for about a month, so he wheeled her backwards and forwards between the house and the hospital.
"You can imagine what that would be if you were three or four blocks away," he says.
But the house was about "so much more" than having a roof over their heads.
"It’s about the people that wrap all this up and make it what it is on a daily basis," he says.
"It’s all been hugely enlightening to know there are people out there that want to help and be part of this.
"We never think it will be one of us, and then all of a sudden, you’re faced with [it].
"I’d heard of [Ranui House], but didn’t understand it very well, I’ve got to say."
Jane: "I can’t say enough for them.
"They’ve been an absolutely amazing family up there, what they do, everyone should know about — they are just incredible people."
Having been given an all-clear a couple of weeks ago, the couple are now in the early stages of planning their European motorbiking adventure, hoping to go next year.
"I can now allow myself to think of such things, which is pretty amazing, really," Jane says.
"This was my chance and my opportunity to live a lot longer."
And, she says, her family will forever be grateful to everyone at Ranui House, and the support they provided.
"It was our home away from home, and we will never forget that special place."
